Month: July 2012

Jillian was at the studio a couple of weeks ago now, I am slowly getting caught up on processing the images taken over the month of July! I recently purchased Nik Software, and while it is reasonably intuitive to use, and came with a a book by Tony Corbell and Joshua Haftel. I have to admit that this has probably slowed me down a little, as I experiment and play, and I am not sure I am using the programs to their fullest advantage, that will come with time.

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I was asked to collaborate with Len Cyca and the model shoot he was doing with Sylvery and Riley. They had asked for Vintage Couple Photos for the two of them, and if time allowed we would also try to do some “pin-up”type images. Silvery and Riley showed up with the perfect outfits, from there we had magic!

This week’s Photoblog Theme Challenge is “black” check out all the images, I will be submitting my image., check out all the images for some great photography.

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One of the best parts of doing a portraits session is chatting with people, Jillian is a great example, we spent a couple of hours together, chatting about her move to the city, a little about her work and her life in between shots, and during clothing and set changes! It seems everyone I meet has some fascinating stories.

For a short time Jillian lived in New York City and work/studied at the United Nations. I think that would have been an amazing experience, I love visiting NYC, I can only image what it would be like to live and work there for a while….

I have been concentrating on portraits for a while, and trying to get caught up processing all the portraits sessions I have been doing, so today I thought I would spend a couple of minutes and bring you something a little different. A couple of months ago we were visiting Vancouver BC, staying in an apartment booked through VROB (vacation rentals by owner) a great site I highly recommend. One evening we went down for a short walk and to watch the sunset. I wanted to take some long exposures of the water and rocks. After using several different exposure lengths to see the effects the different times had on the water, I decided to do a few shots zooming my telephoto lens while the shutter was open.

Here you can see the high-rise buildings of downtown Vancouver, with the sunset behind, their reflection on the water. It has a smoky fire effect, rather than water and reflection. In the bottom of the frame you can see how the rocks have change position, both from right to left and in a vertical line pointing into the frame. you can see my original image Water and Rocks

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Zak, #1 Calgary Flames Fan! I know there are a lot of really great Calgary Flames Fans out there but Zak, has been wearing a flames jersey since he was about 2 days old, and I am guessing he has been to more games than I have. I owe Kim, Jon and Zak a big apology, I have been slow on getting their images processed. That will be rectified this weekend. My goal this week is to get all caught up on the photos, there is much to do!

Zak has the cutest face, I smile the whole time while working on his photos, I may have to print and post one above my computer, having his smiling face about the monitor cheering me on would be a big help.

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I cannot believe that it has been a week since I met Lindsay and her family at Prince’s Island Park for family portraits. It was a lovely evening! We had scheduled the family portraits several times, in June and each time it was a rainy day! Last week we had a beautiful evening, everyone was looking lovely. It has been a busy month, and I am hoping to get caught up on all the photos this week!

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It has been almost a month since I visited the Calgary Zoo with Jen, Pat, Arabella, Baylee, Connor and Maddie, and I have finally finished processing their photos. Maddie and Connor, pictured here are about 22 months old; they are very good about holding hand and walking with someone. here we are on our way to the car after a couple of hours at the zoo, a walk in dinosaur park, and the penguins.

I had a great day with the family, and I am happy to be delivering their photos today!

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Baby Zak was over at the beginning of July for photo, and he was almost holding himself up. He has so much personality in his face, and expressions, I found myself watching, and giggling, and forgetting to take pictures!

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Earlier this week I was thinking, I wanted to get out of the city for a drive, I knew the canola fields were blooming, and there fields would be filled with beautiful shades of yellow and green. As luck would have it I had to drive to a property just south and east of Calgary for work on Tuesday.

I have to admit that I don’t always carry by camera gear in the car, but decided that it was a good idea on Tuesday, and I am glad I did. I stopped on the side of the road near a patch of cattail, natural habitat for red-winged blackbirds.

They won’t let you get too close, this bird chatted at me for quite sometime while I photographed the fields and the cattails. I guess I was a little closer that he liked, and when I didn’t move off, he started to do the flyby.

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I spend last night at Prince’s Island Park, with Lindsay, Jordan and their two children, playing, running around, blowing bubbles and taking family photos. when there are little ones in the “picture” it is quite often easier to be outside, and mixed up the time with photos and play time. To be honest, the playtime often results in some of the best photos. Here is a series one just one bubble that blown last night.